Eddie Lee is a London based pianist and composer and recent graduate of the Royal Academy of Music.
Eddie specialises in Jazz, though his music reflects a wide range of creative influences. The tutorship of top international pianists Gwilym Simcock (ACT) and Kit Downes (ECM) has given him a unique blend of melodic creativity and harmonic dynamism, further cemented by his love of American pianist Brad Mehldau. Similar to Mehldau, Eddie’s influences range from the experimental indie-rock of Radiohead to classical influences such as Benjamin Britten and Ravel, all the while harnessing a strong relationship with the jazz tradition, which informs Eddie’s rhythmic versatility and creative vision.
Eddie’s current project is a seven piece band that features the very finest of the next generation of jazz and classical musicians. The music reflects Eddie’s love of literature, with pieces inspired by writers such as Jack Kerouac and TS Eliot.
Previous projects include a contemporary setting of Eliot’s poem, The Love song of J Alfred Prufrock and a collection of music for string quartet and rhythm section.
If you cannot be with us at the lunchtime concert you can enjoy a similar Concert at Home by clicking through the video buttons below:
Cole Porter (1891-1964) Everything I Love
We open with this live recording of the Adrian Frey Trio, that's Adrian Frey on piano, Patrick Sommer, bass, and Tony Renold, drums:
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (1925-2007) Hymn to Freedom (1962)
Could there be a finer recording than Oscar Peterson and Oliver Jones playing the famous Hymn to freedom in 2004
I am sure you will not be surprised to know that I found no online recording of Eddie Lee's own Zurich. So let's move on to the next item in today's concert.
Albert Hague (1920-2001) Young and Foolish (1954)
From the Bill Evans Trio's1958 album Everybody digs Bill Evans we hear Bill Evans, piano, Sam Jones, bass, and Philly Joe Jones: drums:
Vincent Millie Youmans (1898-1946) Tea for Two (1924)
Art Tatum's rendition of Tea for Two reached number 18 in the US Billboard chart in 1939. It arose out of a 1933 contest, a sort of play-off, with Fats Waller and James P Johnson. The other two great jazz pianists had to admit this was the best number of the evening: